Concrete Playground

Playbutton is a device with an appearance not unlike a button where the act of listening to an album, from start to finish, is wholly embraced. The album's artwork adorns the face of the pin while the controls, positioned on the back and limited to just play, pause, skip, and volume adjustment, mean listening can not be swayed by restless ears and/or fingers. The 4.5cm Playbutton runs on a re-chargeable lithium battery, and cleverly brings back the act of listening to music in the pre-download era. Like a record, you can't put anything on and you can't take anything off.

The prototype was launched early November at a Future: Content conference where the creator put great emphasis on reintroducing a physical element back into the music industry. The instantaneous aspect of the Internet has inevitably conditioned us to a life of distractions where our attention is always short-lived. So with this, a reaction to the constant stream of information thrown our way; from the plethora of options offered by television, radio and even the web browser. How any tabs have you had opened at once? We are continually disconcerted by the prospect of ‘missing out’ as if something better is a click away. Fingers crossed Playbutton reminisces to the unaltered track listing which championed the prospect of ‘time’ that is to be indulged in.

In the final stages of production you’ll soon be able to choose your favourite album before plugging in your best headphones and enjoying music that old tangible way.